Payment Issue with Saudi Airlines
by Celinette644
Translated into English.
Oh, okay. The lawyer told me that an airline can indeed cancel an entire flight but not just a single ticket, so I understand better now. Yeah, I have the receipts and emails confirming everything. It says "proof of payment." The amount and my flight are still confirmed on the airline's app. I even have an email saying my payment was successfully verified. I'll write to them from time to time and see what happens next. Thanks for your feedback
No, an airline can cancel certain tickets and not the entire flight—that’s pretty common for flights booked with miles, promotions, etc.
I’ve had this kind of cancellation before, and the full flight wasn’t canceled.
"Message received from Expedia, tickets paid for and received:" Dear Traveler, Our goal at Expedia.fr is to ensure you have a pleasant and worry-free trip. We’d like to inform you that Alitalia has notified us of the following changes: * has canceled 2 of your flights.
"Message received from Expedia, tickets paid for and received:" Dear Traveler, Our goal at Expedia.fr is to ensure you have a pleasant and worry-free trip. We’d like to inform you that Alitalia has notified us of the following changes: * has canceled 2 of your flights.
Oh, got it! I’ll reach out to the airline again to see if there are any other options available or not, and I’ll let you know 😊. Thanks
Hi there,
We’re in exactly the same situation: we bought our tickets back in February via PayPal for a trip in July. The airline tells us the case is being processed by the relevant department... The tickets are still valid for now, but we’re worried they might get canceled or the price could be reassessed at current rates... How about you? Have you had any concrete updates? Thanks in advance for your reply.
Hello everyone.
I don’t understand how, with all these posts about this airline, some travelers still get lured in by the price without checking what’s really behind it.... You should remove Saudia from your flight ticket searches. That’s exactly what VoyageForum is for....
Safe travels to all.
Hi there,
PayPal canceled the payment after a month.
I still had the tickets, but I decided to buy them again with another airline—I would’ve been anxious until July otherwise...
I also canceled them with Saudia... they told me there’d be a 300 € cancellation fee, but since they don’t have my banking details...
I never got any response despite multiple attempts to contact them and offers to pay.
When are you leaving?
I also canceled them with Saudia... they told me there’d be a 300 € cancellation fee, but since they don’t have my banking details...
I never got any response despite multiple attempts to contact them and offers to pay.
When are you leaving?
Hello everyone.
I don’t understand how, with all these messages about this airline, some travelers still get lured by the price without checking what’s behind it.... You should remove Saudia from your flight search list. That’s what VoyageForum is for, after all....
Safe travels to all.
Hello, Thanks for this lovely life lesson—it’ll really help us move forward.
Not all travelers have the same priorities, budgets, or requirements. Sharing your opinion or experience is helpful, but telling others what they *must* do while judging them is a bit much.
Hello, Thanks for this lovely life lesson—it’ll really help us move forward.
Not all travelers have the same priorities, budgets, or requirements. Sharing your opinion or experience is helpful, but telling others what they *must* do while judging them is a bit much.
Hello,
Thanks for your feedback.
Our booking is for late July, and we only recently noticed the non-payment. Our follow-ups are still "being processed," and surprisingly, the tickets remain in "confirmed" status. We’ll definitely go with another airline and ban Saudi Airlines from our search engines 😅.
Best regards,
Hi there,
I’m facing the same issue—I booked two tickets to Kuala Lumpur back in March for late July. I only recently noticed that the PayPal payment hadn’t been taken. After confirming with PayPal that they’d provided a payment authorization (which would expire in 30 days), I reached out to Saudi Airlines.
After countless back-and-forths between phone calls to customer service and emails/tickets—where they keep assuring me my tickets are valid—I honestly don’t know what to do next.
Departure is coming up fast, and the ticket prices have shot up since I bought them. I’m ready to pay once and for all, but they’re not responding about alternative payment methods.
Has anyone heard any updates by any chance?
Thanks for your help
I’m facing the same issue—I booked two tickets to Kuala Lumpur back in March for late July. I only recently noticed that the PayPal payment hadn’t been taken. After confirming with PayPal that they’d provided a payment authorization (which would expire in 30 days), I reached out to Saudi Airlines.
After countless back-and-forths between phone calls to customer service and emails/tickets—where they keep assuring me my tickets are valid—I honestly don’t know what to do next.
Departure is coming up fast, and the ticket prices have shot up since I bought them. I’m ready to pay once and for all, but they’re not responding about alternative payment methods.
Has anyone heard any updates by any chance?
Thanks for your help
Hi there,
I’ve flown with Saudia five times, and I’ve always left with just the airline’s reservation number (PNR). As long as you have that, your flight is definitely booked—it doesn’t matter if your account hasn’t been debited yet, it will be before your departure anyway.
I’ve flown with Saudia five times, and I’ve always left with just the airline’s reservation number (PNR). As long as you have that, your flight is definitely booked—it doesn’t matter if your account hasn’t been debited yet, it will be before your departure anyway.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
No worries, let things sort themselves out—enjoy your vacation! 😉
Cordialement,
Patrick.
Hello,
I’ve traveled 5 times with Saudia. As long as you have an airline reservation number (PNR), your flight is confirmed—it doesn’t matter if your account has been debited yet or not, it will be before your departure.
You can’t know that—you’ve never had this issue at payment time.
If they FINALLY let us pay at the airport—because that’s what they don’t want, for us to pay there—I hope for their sake it’ll be at the original price...
I’ve traveled 5 times with Saudia. As long as you have an airline reservation number (PNR), your flight is confirmed—it doesn’t matter if your account has been debited yet or not, it will be before your departure.
You can’t know that—you’ve never had this issue at payment time.
If they FINALLY let us pay at the airport—because that’s what they don’t want, for us to pay there—I hope for their sake it’ll be at the original price...
You also can’t know what happens next, no stress. It’s all good in the system with his PNR.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
Hi, I’m in the same boat. Tickets bought on February 25th. As of today, the case is closed by PayPal because the airline didn’t respond after 30 days. Air Saudia tells me everything’s fine on their end. It’s enough to make you pull your hair out!!! I don’t know what else to do. I emailed cr@saudia.com and I’m waiting for a reply...
Hi,
You can also get the credits over the phone in French. As far as they're concerned, if everything is okay, then you don't need to do anything.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
There’s only customer service, otherwise you can download the CheckMyTrip app, then enter your 6-character PNR and your name, and that’s where you’ll see everything about your ticket. I’ve already done this with Saudia.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
If you see it on Checkmytrip, it means it’s definitely confirmed.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
Hi Julie.
Same headache on my end, latest update: I got a response from the ticket I sent to the site’s sales support, quoting: « Dear Saudia Guest, Greetings, Thank you for your inquiry. We value your request and take it into consideration.
We kindly ask you to contact PayPal. Your booking is okay, don’t worry. »
Same headache on my end, latest update: I got a response from the ticket I sent to the site’s sales support, quoting: « Dear Saudia Guest, Greetings, Thank you for your inquiry. We value your request and take it into consideration.
We kindly ask you to contact PayPal. Your booking is okay, don’t worry. »
Hi,
I’ve contacted Saudia’s customer service countless times and never got a proper response. After 30 days, PayPal canceled my payment authorization. So I canceled my tickets with Saudia and booked others with a different airline. It’s been about 3 months since I canceled my tickets with them, and I still haven’t gotten any further responses about the claim tickets I submitted. 😞
I’ve contacted Saudia’s customer service countless times and never got a proper response. After 30 days, PayPal canceled my payment authorization. So I canceled my tickets with Saudia and booked others with a different airline. It’s been about 3 months since I canceled my tickets with them, and I still haven’t gotten any further responses about the claim tickets I submitted. 😞
Update on the situation:
Saudi contacted me to let me know my payment didn’t go through (no kidding 😏). We tried to redo it so I could keep the same price, but they couldn’t even send me a simple payment link with the amount to settle it. My ticket was canceled, so I rebooked with Qatar. For those in the same boat, I’d advise not waiting and canceling your ticket with this airline.
Saudi contacted me to let me know my payment didn’t go through (no kidding 😏). We tried to redo it so I could keep the same price, but they couldn’t even send me a simple payment link with the amount to settle it. My ticket was canceled, so I rebooked with Qatar. For those in the same boat, I’d advise not waiting and canceling your ticket with this airline.
Hello,
I don’t think it’s the airline’s fault—they have no reason not to sell their tickets. I’ve bought tickets through PayPal with them five times and never had any issues. However, I did have a similar experience with another Chinese airline: I paid via PayPal, received the PNR so everything seemed fine, but I never got the bank confirmation of the debit. I checked my account—no PayPal debit. Then I went to my PayPal account, and surprise, they asked for ID to access it, which they don’t usually do. I provided my passport, it said OK, and then I saw the purchase hadn’t gone through. I called PayPal, and the rep told me to try again because they’d had a glitch. The problem was the price was no longer available. Fortunately, every cloud has a silver lining—I found a cheaper option the next day with another Chinese airline.
I don’t think it’s the airline’s fault—they have no reason not to sell their tickets. I’ve bought tickets through PayPal with them five times and never had any issues. However, I did have a similar experience with another Chinese airline: I paid via PayPal, received the PNR so everything seemed fine, but I never got the bank confirmation of the debit. I checked my account—no PayPal debit. Then I went to my PayPal account, and surprise, they asked for ID to access it, which they don’t usually do. I provided my passport, it said OK, and then I saw the purchase hadn’t gone through. I called PayPal, and the rep told me to try again because they’d had a glitch. The problem was the price was no longer available. Fortunately, every cloud has a silver lining—I found a cheaper option the next day with another Chinese airline.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
Hi everyone, I’m in the same situation and, of course, never any concrete answers about what’s going on.
Our departure is in less than a month, and I’ve already sent 5 or 6 complaints with different responses each time. I don’t know what else to do. I’m even thinking of going directly to CDG to see a real person from the airline and try a "message in a bottle" approach …
I just got off the phone with someone else from customer service, and they told me that all tickets paid via PayPal have been canceled. Okay, fine, but we have no record of the cancellation. If anyone else has heard anything since...
Hi,
So it’s PayPal not sending the funds, not the airline.
So it’s PayPal not sending the funds, not the airline.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
Okay, so if I understood correctly how it works: PayPal makes the money available to the seller or merchant for 30 days, and it’s up to them to collect it from PayPal. After that period, PayPal is no longer involved in the transaction, and if the seller hasn’t claimed the money, we aren’t charged. Maybe others can add their info on this topic.
That said, today I’m still stuck trying to pay for my tickets, while on the other side, the merchant can’t even send a payment link. All they’re offering is to buy new tickets. (As of now, they’re nearly 4 times the price I paid initially in February.)
That said, today I’m still stuck trying to pay for my tickets, while on the other side, the merchant can’t even send a payment link. All they’re offering is to buy new tickets. (As of now, they’re nearly 4 times the price I paid initially in February.)
It's true that it's complicated because there are so many different factors—did you buy directly from the airline's website or through an online reseller?
What does it say on your PayPal account about this purchase?
Cordialement,
Patrick.
I bought flight tickets directly from Saudia (I almost never use resellers), and at the payment stage, I selected PayPal.
The transaction appeared fine on PayPal—the total amount and everything were as usual—but after 30 days, the money is no longer available, and PayPal has stepped out of the transaction between the buyer and the seller.
I still plan to stop by the airport during a Saudia check-in to ask to speak with the person in charge and find out how things have gone for others in this situation, since apparently there have been quite a few, according to someone from Saudia customer service.
In this case, it means your bank account wasn’t debited, so the money never reached the airline. When PayPal finalizes the purchase, your bank account is directly debited, and the money is made available to the seller. If your bank account wasn’t debited, it means PayPal didn’t take the money to make it available to the seller (minus PayPal’s small commission taken from the seller on the paid amount). So, it’s normal for the airline to cancel the booking due to lack of funds.
This has happened to me before (see above).
Cordialement,
Patrick.
At the airline level, no, because they never saw the money. Any unpaid booking is canceled. When your bank account isn't debited by PayPal after purchasing a ticket, it means the sale wasn't completed. In this case, you should call PayPal to find out why your account wasn't debited even though you received a confirmation from the airline. If that's the situation, PayPal will cancel the transaction, even though it seems fine on your end. PayPal isn't a credit company—they don't advance funds. No money debited from your account means no ticket, even if you haven't received any info. The airline will tell you to check with the intermediary (PayPal) who should have made your money available.
Airfare prices change from one minute to the next, up or down. Next time this happens with any airline, call PayPal right away.
In conclusion: no debit from your bank account, no ticket.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
What I really don’t get is that PayPal always makes sure the funds are available before approving a transaction with them.
Because I had to try several times to complete the PayPal payment with the airline since I didn’t have my bank’s authorization—my spending limit was exceeded. Even after my bank raised the limit, PayPal approved the payment for Saudia.
Anyway, none of that changes the situation now; as far as I’m concerned, it’s Saudia who didn’t collect the money that was made available, and today I’m still pretty stuck with this whole mess.
Yesterday, a 20-minute call with PayPal confirmed it wasn’t their fault. The merchants have stock, and when there’s too much demand, well, the merchant doesn’t validate some orders—which is what happened to us. For my part, my tickets were canceled by the airline yesterday (my trip is in December). I don’t want to hear about Saudia again, even if our case might be minor. I booked new tickets with Etihad for 250 € more. And in one go! No more 4x without fees. Best of luck to you all
Hi,
It’s always the same thing—they’ll pass the buck back and forth, and in the end, it’s the customer who pays the price. It happened to me with a Chinese airline, and I think it happens with others too. The "4 payments with no fees" option is set up by PayPal, not the airline. If you pay directly with a credit card, you clearly won’t have this issue because with a card, it either goes through or it doesn’t—you’ll know right away.
Cordialement,
Patrick.
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